Sony threw its upcoming handheld system the PlayStation Vita a grand coming out party at E3 this June, showcasing titles in development while avoiding specifics such as a launch date. This week at the annual Tokyo Game Show, it did the opposite.
Sony announced that both PS Vita models will land in Japanese stores on December 17th, 2011 with a healthy launch line-up of 26 games and over 70 more in the works. Other details called excited gamers back to reality.
Battery Life
In March, we called the Nintendo 3DS' three-to-eight hour battery life "subpar." In hindsight, we should have employed another adjective: average.
The PS Vita offers three to five hours of gameplay time per battery charge said Sony. Music and video will last nine hours and five hours, respectively. Charging the unit is estimated to take over two and a half hours if it's completely sapped. Keeping the device's built-in Bluetooth and wireless networking features turned on will decrease the battery life, Sony said. The figures were measured under default conditions, so cranking up the screen's brightness will lessen the amount of time you can play before recharging.
Memory Cards
Vita memory cards will come in four sizes: 4GB, 8GB, 16GB and 32GB. Prices similarly vary. The smallest option is ¥2,200, or around $28. The largest card is ¥9,500, or $123. The middle tier falls in at ¥3,200 ($41) and ¥5,500 ($71), respectively. No bundles will be available at launch.
Whether or not the prices translate perfectly when Sony gears up for a western launch, Sony's decision to stick with proprietary memory cards could end up artificially jacking up the cost of entry for consumers.
Previously, Sony confirmed that game software will include its own save functionality. While that hasn't changed, the company admitted that that may not always be enough.
"Some PS Vita software titles may require the use of separately sold memory card for saving game's saved data while some software titles are capable of saving it on to the PS Vita card itself," said SCEJ.
Competition
Sony made waves when it unveiled the feature-rich Vita three months ago; another slick, powerful, mammoth-screened handheld device to follow the PlayStation Portable. However, one of the biggest surprises that came out of the E3 debut was its price. Sony priced one of the two Vita models at $249.99 - the same as competitor Nintendo's 3DS handheld. The deliberate move proved moot, however, when Nintendo cut $80 from the 3DS price tag last month due to sluggish sales.
When PS Vita launches, it will go toe-to-toe with a $170 handheld. That's when things get interesting.
What do you think about the new details? Will the Vita breeze past the 3DS, or will Nintendo come out on top? Let us know in the comment section.
